Stella Vander - Just for you

Shuichi : When did you start your musical career and what gave you the opportunity for this ?
Stella : I was thirteen years old. I discovered jazz music when I was eight through an uncle who played guitar and composed music. We wrote songs together and I recorded my first album at the beginning of December 1963 : two months later I went onstage for my first "concert" ; I sang two songs ! I had a lot of fun.

Shuichi : In the early period of Magma, before you started to sing with the group, you took a management role, how was the situation at that time ?
Stella : I was doing the internal management for the group because in general I was a little more organised than the musicians but I was not really the manager, rather the "spokesman" for the band, I did the stage lighting too.

Shuichi : How did the air of 70's (vogues or politics...) affect Magma's activity ?
Stella : Magma were not concerned with politics, nor anything else apart from the Music. At that time the public was very open to new things, and they were not blasé like they are today. There was no circuit for rock concerts so we participated very heavily in the creation of a circuit and we very active - playing in the MJC's.

Shuichi : The CD 'Mekanïk Kommandöh' was released in 1989 by Seventh Records. Was this original version supposed to be released by Virgin Records ? Was the release related to 'MDK' being re-visited on stage in 1990 with Klaus Blasquiz ?
Stella : This was a demo tape recorded early in 1973 with a classical choir, it was never intended for release by Virgin Records, the tape belonged to Christian and it was remixed by Seventh Records a long time before we performed 'MDK' again on stage with Klaus.

Shuichi : Around the time you started to sing with Magma, Giorgio Gomelsky came and took over the managing job. How did it happen and how did he behave ? What were his advantages and disadvantages and how did this affect the group ?
Stella : As I have already said, I was not "the manager" and after a long search we met Giorgio. He had a lot of contacts, spoke many languages and was very charming ! He did a good management job with regard to public relations, and he did a lot to make us well-known. He also negotiated some very good record contracts but all the money passed to him and was not always used well... A lot of money was never distributed to the group and even today those discs (Charly, Tomato, etc) are sold all over the world but Christian does not get any of the royalties... All the money goes to a company controlled by Giorgio.

Shuichi : "Utopia" was not just the name of the record label, it was also regarded as a main goal for Magma's compositions. Did this situation lead to misunderstanding or criticism ?
Stella : Utopia was just the name of Giorgio's label, we had nothing to do with the choice of this name.

Shuichi : According to Gomelsky's note for Nico's cassette release in 1980, Magma and Nico travelled together in the mid 70's. What was your impression of her ? Did Magma and Nico play on stage at the same time ? He mentioned that the van carrying Magma and Nico crashed off the road while travelling towards southern France ? Were you there too ?
Stella : Magma and Nico often travelled together, and she was the opening act. She was a very sensitive musician and some of her pieces were very nice ; it was not always easy for her, alone on the stage, in front of an audience who were impatient to see Magma. Luckily I was not there on the day the van got involved in an accident, because everyone in it was slightly injured.

Shuichi : Do you have any plans for re-releasing or remixing the 'Inedits' album, and publishing unrecorded songs and old live tapes ?
Stella : We want to re-release it, but we can't do a re-mix because the original tapes were recorded live in just 2-track stereo from the soundboard. We have created the AKT label especially for releasing these old documents.

Shuichi : Is there any possibility that the series of Ëmëhntëht-Rê, including 'Ptâh' will be published ?
Stella : 'Ptâh' was never recorded in a definitive version but we might release a concert version among an album composed uniquely of drum solos from different eras.

Shuichi : Before releasing the album 'Üdü Wüdü', the stage version of 'De Futura' was called 'De Futura Hiroshima'. Was there any relation with the name of the city in Japan that was destroyed by atomic-bomb during the second world war ?
Stella : That is a question for Jannick.

Shuichi : The album 'Attahk' was not only innovative musically but had a hidden meaning to the story. Could you explain the roles of Ourgon and Gorgo ?
Stella : In this album, for the first time we recorded two different parts for the bass, in opposition and complementary. Ourgon was the "Earth" bassist, much like the vertebral column of the ensemble and Gorgo was the "Air" bassist, very light and swift.

Shuichi : What was the difference between the Kobaïan gods, Kreühn Köhrmahn and ZI ?
Stella : ZI is not a god, but the master of the SPIRIT.

Shuichi : Around the time of 'Attahk' onwards, Magma took more interest in R&B or the Tamla Motown sound rather than traditional European music. Could you give us the names of artists that enlightened you ? What were the R&B songs which were played on stage by Magma, for instance at the Retrospektïw concerts in 1980 ?
Stella : I like and listen to a lot of the music of the 60's (as does Christian). Above all Otis Redding, James Brown, Sam & Dave, Edwin Starr, Carla Thomas, Junior Walker, The Supremes, Martha and the Vandellas, Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye and many others who are not so famous. We have not played the material from that era with Magma, just original compositions inspired by the spirit of that music.

Shuichi : Could you roughly explain to us the "six tales about death" of the 'Merci' album ?
Stella : When the recording of MERCI was nearly finished, we noticed that the lyrics of each of the songs were related to death or approaching deathSo we subtitled it SIX TALES ABOUT DEATH, but we never expected that at the beginning.

Shuichi : The latest Offering album has got the title 'A Fiïèh'. What does it mean ?
Stella : This title expresses the emotion which connects to the lower position yet thinking of the higher position at the same time. Not to forget the high when one is low, not to forget the low when one is high.

Shuichi : 'Wurdah Ïtah' has recently been performed lots of times with Les Voix de Magma, but it seemed that when the 'Tristan et Iseult' album was originally released, it was not performed often. Why was that so ?
Stella : During '72 and '73 we played it a lot. This is a good song for performance by "Les Voix" who express the real colour of the song.

Shuichi : Are there any plans to combine your music with ballet, theatre, or other kinds of performance ?
Stella : We will play 'Zëss' and 'Les Cygnes et les Corbeaux' with a symphony (fifty-five people) and maybe together with a ballet too.

Shuich : Christian's "Un homme, une batterie" is the only video from Seventh Records. Do you have any other films of Magma or Offering, and will you release any of these in the future ? What is your minimum order of cassettes, since there is great demand in Japan (and USA) for NTSC recording system releases as well as in PAL and SECAM ?
Stella : Two hundred and fifty is the minimum number for releasing a NTSC format video.

Shuichi : Please tell us about your participation in projects outside of Magma and Offering.
Stella : I participate in the production of all the albums on Seventh. In the capacity of a musician, the most recent album to which I contributed is : 'Chamber 3' by Lydia Domancich, released by Gimini Records.

Shuichi : Your first solo album has a rather peaceful tendency as opposed to rhythmic. Is this your current preference ?
Stella : It's not a preference, but this is an aspect of my personality which, until now, has remained unknown to the fans of Magma and Offering.

Shuichi : What is your approach towards jazz music ?
Stella : Since I was eight years old, I have listened to jazz and always found new things each time. I love singing this music very much and I sing standards at home, for my personal pleasure.

Shuichi : Regarding Classical music, which composers do you prefer ?
Stella : I like Bach, Stravinsky, Ravel, Debussy, Chopin and Wagner, tremendously.

Shuichi : Are you interested in any contemporary musicians ?
Stella : I am not very keen on contemporary music, if that is what you mean. But I like some pieces by Messiaen, Luciano Berio and I enjoy the music of Leonard Bernstein very much.

Shuichi : Do you plan to make second solo album ? If yes, how is it going on ?
Stella : I will probably make a second album but we have other projects to realise before that.

Shuichi : What is the significance of live performance for you ?
Stella : Concerts are absolutely indispensable for searching music. This is a moment that we need to seize and then to put into it all the emotion and energy possible every time. It is there that one needs to attempt things, to try to put your ideas into shape, before being able to keep the essentials to engrave on an album. The contact with an audience gives the musician energy ; I could not work solely in a studio (which I adore !) and I pity those musicians who never play live...

Shuichi : 'Les Cygnes et les Corbeaux' ; this song has already been played for many years and I heard it will be included on the new Offering album. This does not sound like a typical Offering song, but it seems to be related to Magma too. In which position does this song exist ?
Stella : This is simply Christian's music. For me it is not important to categorise his music as either a "Magma" piece or an "Offering" one ; it's a composers music. For example, a composer like Stravinsky wrote very different music during his lifetime, a painter like Picasso (for another example) had a "blue" period, then a pink period. It just happens that Christian started his career by giving a name to a group of which he was the leader. He could have called the group simply CHRISTIAN VANDER from the start, and today you would just be talking about Christian Vander's music.

Shuichi : Seventh Records has already existed for seven years. What is the management situation now ? Is there any legal relationship between Seventh and Charly Records in the UK ?
Stella : Seventh constantly progresses thanks to the hard work of people who give it all their hearts and energy. There is no relationship between Charly and Seventh, Charly are only interested in making money for themselves, without any respect for Magma and they pay no royalties to Christian, neither do Tomato or A&M...

Shuichi : You recently staged Seventh Records' 7th anniversary concert. How did it happen ?
Stella : We had the festival for the 7th anniversary of Seventh as a series of three concerts in Paris, at the Bataclan and all the groups on the label performed, almost six hours of non-stop music each night.

Shuichi : I heard that some of the Japanese record companies contacted you a few years ago. Is there any progress?
Stella : Before the birth of Seventh, we contacted King records about re-issuing many Magma albums in Japan. We reached an agreement, but we suddenly heard nothing more from them despite several attempts to re-establish contact. It's a shame that our albums are not distributed properly in Japan and I understand that they are not easy to find there.

Shuichi : Les Voix de Magma has existed for several years. With this band, do you aim to increase the role of Magma's harmonies ?
Stella : Les Voix de Magma has existed since 1992. It's a group which I love very much, because it permits us to play Christian's music with the basic elements that he used in composition : the voice and the piano. It displays the purity of this music and proves that you do not need the rhythmic elements to make powerful music.

Shuichi : Is the New Magma different from Les Voix de Magma ? Will 'Zëss' be included on the new Magma album or will it be all new songs ?
Stella : I don't know what You mean by "New Magma". It is not a group in any case. There will be a new album under the name Magma in due course, which is not comprised of new compositions. But once again, it is important... It is always the music of Christian Vander.

Shuichi : Do you have plans to come to Japan in the near future ? I am very sure that Magma will be welcomed by many fans in Japan.
Stella : We are currently trying to make contacts to arrange to play in Japan. It is a project which we hold very dear to our hearts. Christian does not like travelling by air, but he says that travelling to Japan would not be a problem ! It will not be easy and we will need the support of our fans to make this happen. We would like to meet a Japanese concert promoter. We would be very happy to play in Japan and we would like to say "thank you" to those who might come to see us in concert, in advance !

Shuichi Matsumoto, February 94 (Marquee 054)
(re-printed in ORK ALARM ! n° 23 , october 94)

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